My Word with Douglas E. Welch

For the last several days I have been back in Ohio for the kick-off of the Saturday6 program. I added 1 day to my trip in order to spend some time with my family that still lives here. I moved to Los Angeles 25 years ago and don’t get back very often. We were on our way to visit my Aunt and Uncle when it started bucketing down. It has been a very wet Spring this year and we even had some flooding along our route. I decided to capture a short piece of our ride and by accident an Amish buggy came trotting by in the other direction.

Watch “Rainy Day in Ohio” – iPod Ready Format

After a good year for rain, like this one, the California Poppy bloom, along with other wildflowers should be quite dramatic. You can keep abreast of what is happening by visiting the Antelope Valley California Poppy Reserve SNR web site or calling their hotline at (661) 724-1180.

Click to see many pictures from our 2003 trip to the park

Here is there latest report…

Latest Poppy Reserve Research Field Notes and Observations
3-10-11: Mary Wilson
Antelope Trail North Loop
Poppies are just starting to bloom.
Look for blossoms on filaree, fiddleneck, pygmy-leaved lupine, and slender keel fruit.

Antelope Trail South Loop
Poppies just starting to bloom.
Look for blossoms on filaree, fiddleneck, pygmy-leaved lupine, and slender keel fruit.

Lightning Bolt Trail
Poppies just starting to bloom.
Look for blossoms on filaree, fiddleneck, pygmy-leaved lupine, bush lupine, slender keel fruit, lacey phacelia, red maids, Western for-get-me-not, a tiny for-get-me-not, sun cups, hairy lotus, cream cups and rattlesnake weed.

Poppy Trail North Loop Trail
Poppies just starting to bloom.
Look for blossoms on filaree, fiddleneck, pygmy-leaved lupine, slender keel fruit, fringe pod, wild onions, red maids, sun cups, gold fields and owl’s clover.

Poppy Trail South Loop
Poppies just starting to bloom.
Look for blossoms on filaree, fiddleneck, pygmy-leaved lupine, goldfields, silver puffs and slender keel fruit.

Tehachapi Vista Point Trail
Poppies just starting to bloom.
Look for blossoms on filaree, goldfields, pygmy-leaved lupine, slender keel fruit and grape soda lupine.

Valley Vista Point
Poppies just starting to bloom.
Look for blossoms on filaree, fiddleneck, pygmy-leaved lupine, and slender keel fruit, forget-me-nots and evening snow.

3-10-11: Mike Powell

I think the best trails right now are the North Poppy Loop trail (it has some, already, impressive displays of owl’s clover, the cream cups, goldfields and a few poppy blossoms among others). The northern segment of the trail leaving the parking lot (it has some nice displays of forget-me-nots and, late in the afternoon, evening snow and a few poppy blossoms). The last is the Tehachapi Vista trail with its grape soda lupine, goldfields and some poppy blossoms.

Just saw this announcement from the Museum of the San Fernando Valley — Douglas

North Hollywood “NoHo” Historic Walking Tour

Please join us on Saturday, January 22nd from 10:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. to learn about real cowboys, pioneer families, movie television and recording stars, the Spanish conquest, Mexican ranchos, great steam trains, vast ranches and orchards, land barons, wars, architecture, and much more!

Tour highlights include:

• Amelia Earhart Statue
  
• Security Trust and Savings Bank (1924)
  
• Amelia Earhart Library (1928)
  
• El Portal Theatre (1926)
  
• NoHo Arts District
  
• NoHo Fire Station #60
  
• So. Pacific Railroad Depot (1896)
  
• Commonwealth Savings & Loan Building
  
• Weddington Family History
  
• North Hollywood Masonic Temple Lodge 542
  
• St. Paul’s First Lutheran Church
  
• Lankershim Arts Center (1939) (S. Charles Lee, architect)
  
• Commonwealth Savings & Loan Building
  
• Air raid siren
  
• Lankershim Elementary School (Marilyn Monroe attended)

RSVP: 1-818-347-9665 or email at events@TheMuseumSFV.org
Please leave name, address and phone number

Cost: $10 per person suggested donation

Parking: Street and metered parking in area

Tour meets at Amelia Earhart Statue; NW corner of Tujunga St. & Magnolia Blvd. (at corner of Library)

Please visit us on the web at www.theMuseumSFV.org.

Thank you to sponsor Universal City/North Hollywood Chamber of Commerce.

A short montage of scenes from the Antelope Valley Indian Museum, a California State Park near Palmdale, California.

Thunderstorm and Rainbows, originally uploaded by dewelch.

We were out in at the Woodley Park Archery Range this evening when a pop-up thunderstorm rolled across the San Fernando Valley. The rainbows were quite striking, as was the sunset as the clouds rolled west.. The iPhone really doesn’t do the rainbows justice, but it is nice to have collected a few movies.

Imagine lying on the grass and looking up through the lovely palm trees on Cabrillo Beach in Santa Barbara, California.

A time-lapse movie condensing our 30 minute “flight” on the London Eye into 1:12 minutes.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Images from a short walk in Millard Canyon, Angeles National Forest, just north of Los Angeles.

I noticed today that someone bought this book, Mary Colter: Architect of the Southwest from my Amazon store today. It reminded me how much I enjoyed the books (there was a PBS special, as well) after I had visited the Grand Canyon for the first time. You can’t travel the great tourist locations of the Southwest without rubbing up against much of Colter’s architecture.

She also designed Hermit’s Rest at the Grand Canyon, which is one of my favorite places to visit. There is something amazing about sitting on the stone porch as the the sun sets over the canyon and the ravens cackle.

More books on Mary Colter
YouTube videos of Mary Colter Buildings